A wide blast of flame leaps down the Disney Castle corridor, sweeping up dozens of Heartless in its wake. Donald Duck moans and nearly collapses, only the help of Huey and Louie keeping him upright. Once their uncle is relatively steady, the boys usher him along with the rest of the fleeing wedding guests.
At the group's front, Kairi and Riku use their Keyblades to mow through the dark forces threatening them from that direction. Minnie runs behind, somehow keeping up in the dress she's wearing. She adds her own power to the charge, balls of light bouncing from Heartless to Heartless before the Keyblade wielders could even get in reach.
The reception hall is just ahead, the first place they could think to hold all the terrified guests. No doubt there are Heartless inside there as well, but it's a safer bet than to remain in the absolutely infested audience chamber.
All had seemed normal, if unusually slow-moving. The sudden appearance of so many Heartless, flooding out from a place that had been presumed safest of all in the castle, had startled everyone. Luckily, several guests had learned long ago to be prepared for Heartless to arrive even when unexpected. Leon alone had felled several Soldiers within seconds, armed with nothing but the chair he had only a second earlier been sitting in.
Others had taken quick action as well, not least of all being Queen Minnie herself. Hers had been the calm, controlling voice that had prevented overwhelming chaos. Kairi and Riku arrived, Keyblades in hand, not a moment later. With the most powerful weapons against Heartless now in play, the queen had commanded a quick and orderly exit. With Donald's magic, Goofy and Leon holding the rear, and the Keyblade wielders and Minnie leading the charge, everyone had quickly left the main battle zone.
The halls had been no less intense, but the corridors' crowded nature and linearity had actually proven to be a boon. Faced with fewer avenues of attack, the Heartless had been hindered enough to make things manageable. There was always the threat of aerial assault of course, but luckily Merlin had been on time for the ceremony. His spells light the sky, working with Tron's drone to prevent airborne Heartless from swooping too close.
Now the massive wedding exodus has nearly reached their final destination, the hall's double doors open invitingly. Kairi is the first through, light already gathering at her fist. A cadre of Neoshadows occupy the room, their twitchy movements and general restlessness making the once carefully organized room chaotic and messy. Overturned chairs, shattered tables and broken centerpieces lie scattered about.
The sight sets a rage loose in Kairi's heart that she's seldom felt. The thought of all this hard work, so many hands lovingly preparing something that to celebrate people they care about, all being ruined by the forces of darkness, leaves her with only one though: to stop it. And somehow, she knows that she can.
"Not my centerpieces!" she yells, thrusting her Keyblade forward. Light expands from its tip, sweeping across the room. Wherever the light touches a Heartless, it disappears into nothing. Within a few moments, the room is cleared of all dark minions. Impressive as the feat is, it leaves Kairi feeling drained like she seldom has ever been. The exhaustion compounds whatever badness has been hampering her all day, and she practically collapses.
Luckily, Riku manages to catch her. He pulls her to the side, letting her rest in a chair while the others come pouring in. Minnie stands by and watches the throng fill the room, carefully examining everyone to see that no one has been left behind. Once the last person has entered, she helps Goofy close the doors. They slam shut with a loud, firm noise. Closing her eyes, the queen lays a hand on the wood. White light pours into it, forming a shimmering barrier that she hopes can't be pierced. Across the room, a similar effect lays over the doors to the garden. The Heartless scratching at that door recoil and disappear.
"What's going on, Your Majesty?" Goofy asks, nervously wringing his hands. "All them creatures shouldn't be here, on account of the Cornerstone. And where's Mickey? Or Azlyn and Telary?"
"Sora too," Riku adds, standing by the captain with his arms folded tightly. In fact, everyone is beginning to crowd around the queen. They're all desperate for answers.
"Unfortunately, I've been just as blindsided by all this as you all have," Minnie replies, doing her best to keep strength suffused in every word. "But no doubt the king and the others aren't here because they're doing something about all this."
"Yeah," Cid chimes in with his usual gruffness. "This whole thing's got that 'SAT misadventure' stink about it." The rest of the Radiant Garden contingent mumble their agreement. Riku snorts at the joke as well.
"Are we just gonna sit around and wait for them to show up, or what?" Yuffie asks, drumming her fingers against a table.
"The Heartless won't be long to break through the doors," Leon points out, frowning. "Or materializing in here."
Minnie shakes her head. "No, that won't happen," she assures the group. "After the fiasco with the Cornerstone last year, I decided something needed to be done in case the Heartless would return. I already had a protective spell, so I simply adapted it with Donald and the king's help. I don't have enough power to secure the entire castle, but this room should be safe at least."
"I think Kairi did something too," Riku adds, nodding at the redhead. She barely raises her head in acknowledgment, too exhausted. "Regarding the waiting… Well, that's us first assuming that everything is alright with them. I'm not saying we lose hope completely in them, but…"
"What we really need is more information," Donald pipes in. He looks a bit ruffled from all the magic he's been throwing around, but manages to stay upright and steady. "What's going on and all that. What's happening in the throne room."
"And how do you propose we do that?" Leon asks. "We've trapped ourselves in here just as effectively as we shut the Heartless out."
"I could possible open a temporary way through the garden door," Minnie says, though her grimace says it isn't something she'll do lightly. "If someone could slip out and sneak through to the audience chamber…"
"No problem!" Yuffie declares, leaping out of her chair and giving the queen her biggest grin. "They don't call me the great ninja for nothing. You may not know it to look at me, but I am the mistress of stealth!"
Minnie shoots Leon a questioning glance. He lets out a sigh, but nods. "She is pretty good at sneaking around."
"She's stolen several of my hair bands while I wasn't looking," Aerith confirms.
"Swipes my lunch at least twice a week, even when I'm sitting right next to the fridge," Cid adds, snarling at the memory.
Riku steps forward. "I'm going with her. I'm not averse to sneaking around either, and it'll be safer to have a Keyblade along."
"Sounds like a date to me!" Yuffie easily agrees, prompting the swiftest of twitches from her silver-haired partner.
Sitting at a table nearby, Clarabelle Cow scoffs and turns away from the proceedings.
"Alright," Minnie agrees, hardly sounding pleased with the idea. "It's rather easy to access the roof from the garden, and the audience chamber's windows should be high enough that you won't be noticed."
"If you're careful," Leon adds, looking especially hard at Yuffie. "Which you will be, right?"
"As can be, Leon," the ninja replies. She scratches at her cheek, barely hiding the sudden blush there. "Thanks for the consideration."
Once Riku checks up on Kairi, who swears she'll be alright after a bit of rest, Minnie leads him and Yuffie to the backdoor. Wishing them luck, she closes her eyes and draws the door's protective shimmer back in. They quickly open the door and go through, slipping through the small gap. Once they're out, Minnie releases her breath and the barrier returns.
Riku turns to Yuffie, ready to say something Soraesque and encouraging. But she's already gone, climbing a tall shrub near the castle's wall. He springs forward to follow, and by the time he's on the roof she's making her way along it.
"You could at least wait a minute," he admonishes, picking up the pace so they can stay somewhat together.
She starts scrambling up to a higher roof, not looking back. "Or you could just keep up."
Now is really not the time for this juvenile behavior. A big part of Riku wants nothing more than to inform his partner of that, but something stops him. Chiding himself for what he's about to do, but resolute about doing it regardless, Riku takes a running start. Calling upon all his reserves of strength, he bounds upward. His touches down a few feet from the edge, looking over his shoulder just as Yuffie finishes her climb.
"How's that?" he asks.
She grins at him. "Fine by me."
They continue along, each trying their best to outdo the other. Disney Castle's rooftop terrain provides them with plenty of opportunities, dotted with turrets, chimneys, and all sorts of other protrusions. Eventually, they reach the audience chamber's roof. It takes some maneuvering and a lot of care to climb, but eventually they're directly overhead. Two giant skylights are on either side of the rood, allowing natural light to come into the room. Carefully, Riku opens one just a hair.
Looking down, the pair can see that a large contingent of Heartless occupy the room. The throne's have been reset, the entrance to the Cornerstone's chamber concealed beneath that platform. Riku instant recognizes the person occupying the king's chair. Or at least trying to.
"Well," Pete says after a moment, frowning at the far-too-small seat, "guess I'll have to put 'get a bigger throne' on my to-do list."
"Don't start celebrating yet," a female duck dressed in black warns the fat cat, petting a non-anthropomorphic raven. "According to Poe, the rat queen has managed to hold herself up in one of the halls. The Heartless are trying, but none of them can pierce the doors. Neither are they manifesting in the room itself."
"I thought this might happen," Pete admits, crossing his arms belligerently. "I'll bet it's just some kinda fancy magic."
"I assumed so as well," the witch replies. "I'll go see how I can affect the situation, shall I?"
"Watch out for a silver-haired kid, and a redhead," Pete warns her. "They got Keyblades of their own."
"What?" a third voice exclaims. A tall, skinny rat in a lab coat rushes into view. "You didn't say anything about any other Keyblades!"
"They ain't so important," Pete replies, waving dismissively. "Actually, Magica, if ya get a chance to nab the redhead, go ahead. Maleficent'll want her."
The witch nods, walking off to do the deed. Her heels click against the marble floor with every step. Yuffie, scowling, immediately moves to follow, but Riku stops the ninja with a hand on her shoulder. She frowns at him, puzzled, but he merely gestures back to the room below. Pete and his other cohort are conversing.
"Ya sure that thing is gonna hold up long term, Morty?" Pete asks.
"I did some analysis after we banished the ol' Mick and his cronies," the scientist replies, smiling smugly. "Not only will the Blot sustain itself indefinitely, all my tests indicate that it's only becoming stronger as it absorbs more of the Cornerstone's energy. I'll be keeping track of its development with interest, ha-cha-cha!"
Riku nods to Yuffie, quietly lowering the window back into place. Once it's secured, he stands and starts for the roof's edge. "C'mon, we've got to get to the others and warn them."
"If you're so concerned about that," Yuffie asks as they begin their descent, "why'd you stick around?"
"We need some kind of information about what's going on," he explains, shrugging as his feet touch down. "Something about the Cornerstone, some Blot thing, and absorbing energy. Minnie probably knows more about the Cornerstone, she can most likely figure things out from there."
"Quick thinking," Yuffie says, clearly impressed. "Not just a pretty face, eh?"
Riku stumbles a bit at the quip, barely keeping himself from falling. He's just formulating a reply when a familiar sound fills the air. Looking up, he sees a cadre of Air Soldiers swooping down. Scowling, he turns to face them and summons Way to Dawn.
KH-KH-KH
Sora's ready to come out swinging. Telary and Azlyn are even more bloodthirsty, the wizard popping off a Fira before the hazy light of transportation even dims. How disappointing, then, that there isn't anything to hit.
The trio, Mickey, and Oswald stand in the castle's tallest tower, a spacious room with nothing but a table and the conical blue hat inscribed with white stars and moons sitting atop it. All is quiet, no sounds of either celebration or struggle in the air.
"It's too quiet," Sora remarks, once he's finished shielding his face from the fireblast.
"Maybe all the butts have already been kicked," Azlyn remarks, pouting at the prospect.
"Eh, I wouldn't count on that, Az," Mickey reports. Holding out his hand, he summons his gold-bladed Keyblade. After a few practice swings, he holds the blade up. "Cornerstone's still blocked up. The tower's just too far away for us to hear anything."
"I hate quiet anyway." Azlyn stalks toward the door, practically growling as she goes.
"Wait a second," Telary calls to his fiancée, who reluctantly stops and turns around to face him. "Charging in without a plant might not be for the best. We don't know what exactly is going on down there."
"Heartless probably," Sora answers, shrugging. "Ooh, scary. We can take 'em, especially once we hook up with the others."
"But what are we supposed to do to restore the Cornerstone?" the wizard asks. "As long as it's blocked, I get the feeling Pete and his band aren't going away."
Everyone turns to Oswald, who's currently examining the master spell control hat. Feeling all eyes on him, he shifts to look at the others. "Hey, I sure don't know!" he replies, holding his hands up defensively. "My only concern at the time was whether or not it would work at all, who cared about trying to stop it."
"C'mon, Os," Mickey implores his brother. "Mortimer and Magica had to have told ya something we can use. Even if it was just some little thing they mentioned, anything could help."
"Fine, fine." The rabbit closes his eyes, his face scrunching and his gloved hands tightening as he goes deep in thought. After a moment, it begins to look as if he's actually collapsing in on himself. Just when the others are starting to get really concerned, Oswald gasps in a huge breath that reinflates his body. Looking at his allies, the rabbit smiles. "Okay, maybe I got something. Magica said that her spell makes it so the Blot can convert the Cornerstone's energy into its own, absorbing it basically."
"Um, okay?" Sora says, frowning. "Not to say that's not helpful at all, but…"
"Oh, I got it then!" Telary exclaims with a snap of his fingers. "At least, I think…"
"C'mon, Tel, I'm sure it's a great idea," Azlyn encourages him, though not sweetly.
"Maybe there's a way we can change the spell," the wizard continues. "Make the opaque Blot substance become more transparent. The only downside is it would take a lot of careful examination, trial and error type stuff. Not exactly something we'd have in a warzone."
"Not to mention the Blot seems capable of defending itself," Mickey notes, pursing his lips. After a moment though, he shrugs. "Still, it's something to think about anyway. Meanwhile, I think Sora was right when he said we should hook up with everyone else. Maybe someone else can help generate ideas then."
Any other possible discussion is curtailed when, accompanied by a frightfully loud bang of flesh against wood, the tower's only door nearly jumps straight off its hinges. The party barely has time to whirl and face it before a platoon on Soldier Heartless burst into the room, a few Red Nocturne's floating behind for aerial support.
Sora opens his mouth to give the battle an opening line, but Azlyn doesn't wait. With a savage roar she charges. Leaping up, she grabs a Nocturne by its golden hat and hurls it into the Soldier crowd. A few fall down, the others caught by their descent. Azlyn reaches out and grabs more heads, throwing two Heartless back toward her companions.
Sora slashes the airborne monsters, as Mickey leaps and bounds over his child's head. His Keyblade strikes out in a golden blur, three Heartless defeated by the single swipe. A Nocturne strafes through the air in search of aim, but the king merely uses a glowing Holy spell to vanquish it. The ball of light bounces off the defeated Heartless, disintegrating two more of the buggers before finally petering out.
The Heartless are gone, but Azlyn and Mickey don't stop. Neither so much as pauses before charging down the stairwell. Sora follows behind with an enthusiastic cry, leaving Oswald and Telary to hold up the rear. The wizard follows his companions, but reaching the staircase's threshold realizes he's going alone. Looking over his shoulder, he spots Oswald. The rabbit looks around, obviously contemplating staying behind.
Telary only sighs. Reaching behind him, the wizard pulls Mickey's brother along behind him.
Every few steps down the staircase is another fight, Mickey leading the way with his Keyblade swinging while Azlyn and Sora pick up whatever gets through. A Hook Bat swings past the king to come for Azlyn, who's too busy dealing with a Soldier to notice until the airborne creature is already barreling down on her. She tries to turn and deal with it, losing her footing and falling back. Sora barely avoids getting the Keyblade out of her way, but takes the full impact of her upper body. They fall together, sliding downward.
Mickey is already several steps down the stairway. Through the sounds of his battle with a few Soldiers, he doesn't even notice the sounds of his companions bumping down the steps. They run into him just as he's preparing to leap upward, bringing him into the sprawl as well. But the king falls forward, sliding into the feet of his opponents. The tangled crew keep moving down the stairwell, twisting to follow its curve until they can see the open door at the bottom. They get air as the stairs end, tumbling out into the sunlit hallway.
The Heartless don't seem any worse for wear, but Sora, Azlyn, and Mickey are far too disoriented from their trip to respond. The Soldiers stride forward, confident in victory with their prey so scrambled. Sora, the least disordered of the bunch, tries to prop himself up to at least give himself a chance. But it's too late, the Heartless already within striking distance.
Then suddenly a great crash fills the hallway. Looking up, Sora, Azlyn, and Mickey watch as Riku comes tumbling through a broken skylight, battling two Air Soldiers. The silver-haired Keyblade wielder slashes through one, turns to stab the other, then flips head-over-heels to arrest his momentum enough to come in for a safe landing. Yuffie follows a second later, daeling with her own Heartless opponent by making sure it is the one taking the impact of their landing. She flips backwards, landing easily on her feet.
Although now disoriented in an entirely new way, Sora manages to stand. Kingdom Key slashes in a straight horizontal arc, cleanly lopping the Soldiers' heads off. The Keybearer is about to greet his friend when Riku thrusts his hand out. Sora spins away, just catching the sight of three Blue Rhapsodies receiving a blast of Riku's dark fire.
Telary comes barreling out of the stairwell a moment later, hands held out and ready to do some damage. Seeing there's nothing here to do damage to, he lowers them.
"Oh, hi Riku," the groom says. "Yuffie. Some day, huh?"
"I'd say it isn't working out how I expected," Riku quips, placing a hand on his hip and shrugging, "but honestly, I figured something like this would come up."
"I gotta hang out with you guys more," Yuffie comments, shaking her head. "Cool shit always follows you around."
"Not sure you'd be saying that if you were in my shoes right now," Azlyn grumbles, allowing Telary to help her get upright.
"I'm plenty curious as to what this is all about," Riku says, looking over the group with a slight frown. "Especially the, um, unique smell. But for now it can wait. Minnie's got the guests held up in the reception hall, but some duck lady's going there to try and break in. We've got to…"
He doesn't even get to finish before Azlyn, Telary, and Mickey rush off down the hallway at full dead sprints. He only allows himself a moment of disorientation before he starts off after him. Yuffie follows close behind, grinning manically. Sora is naturally about to follow when he notices something is off. Or rather, someone.
The Keybearer turns to see Oswald standing in the doorway to the tower staircase. His arms are cross, a scowl marring his face.
"Well, aren't you gonna go running off too, kid?" he asks, his eyes narrowing.
"Aren't you going to fix your attitude?" Sora snaps. Oswald is taken aback by the sudden venom, so the boy presses on. "This place is your home too, and you should consider yourself lucky that Mickey is willing to open it back up to you. If I were you, I'd be putting one-hundred and ten percent into this. After all, what would happen if Mickey suddenly realized…"
"Alright already, alright!" Oswald concedes, hands raised in surrender. "Gee kid, you sure know how to lay it on thick. I don't know if I can do all that much, I'm a lover not a fighter and all that, but…" He sighs, shaking his head. "But you're right. This is my mistake anyway, eh? So hand me one of those rapiers hanging on the wall, won't ya?"
KH-KH-KH
It's not every day that Magica DeSpell, sorceress extraordinaire, is impressed. Most of that has to do with her ridiculously high self-image, but she has enough power to back up most claims. Whatever spell Queen Minnie has going on this door, on the other hand, is truly upper level work. Her first few enchantments don't even make a dent. Starting to get perturbed, she pulls her magic book out of the pocket dimension she keeps it in. Poe holds it open in front of her while she flips through.
"Hmm, barrier spells, barrier spells," she mutters, indicating page turns to a familiar with a little twist of her head. "Oh, here we… Oh, fiddlesticks. Why would they put counter spells in a separate chapter? Ugh, this is the last time I order online!"
Finally, after much frustration, she comes upon what she desired. A list of barrier-countering spells, half a page's worth. Magica hardly cares, used to much trial and error in her workings. Plus, it isn't like she's strapped for time. Settling in on the first incantation on the list, she begins chanting, her hands waving in appropriate energy-gathering motions. Green energy surrounds them, and once she can feel the magic built up to fever pitch, she releases it.
Magic clashes against magic, a cloud of thick white smoke filling Magica's vision for a brief moment. Once it clears, the door stands unperturbed. Magica sighs, no other signs of annoyance slipping out. On to the next one then.
She's just beginning her next chant when the sounds of nearby battle prick her ears. Frowning, she turns down the hallway. A few Silver Rock spawn in the air above her, watching the bend in the hall with their shining yellow eyes.
A blast of flame curls around it, sending a trio of Surveillance Drones scattering in its wake. Azlyn leaps out, kicking an Armored Soldier down. She catches it before the creature falls completely, lifting and hurling the Heartless into two more of its kind. All three hit the wall ad dissipate.
It takes Magica a moment to recognize what this means. It only gets worse when Mickey and Telary join the fight. It seems some promises that have been made were not fulfilled. Perhaps more than a cruel banishment is necessary to solve this problem.
So Magica begins preparations for another spell, leaving the barrier unattended for now. Dark red energy, crackling with stabs of black lightning, surrounds her entire body in a nimbus. She focuses ahead, gathering all the hatred she can muster to fuel her dark working. The Keybearer and two more people are around the corner now, all six engaged in a fight with the Heartless horde. A perfect shot.
Until Oswald makes it around, his natural inclination to check all angles paying off handily. "Whoa, incoming from nine-o'clock people!" When his exclamation fails to draw the others' attention, he scoffs and pivots. Pulling his arm back, the rabbit throws his rapier with all the speed from a bow-launched arrow.
The sharpened metal coming straight at her does not do wonders for Magica's concentration. That combined with her utter shock at seeing Oswald comporting with those he'd vowed to destroy last time she'd seen him, throws off her spell's necessary mental preparation. The dark energies dissipate as the rapier buries itself in the carpet not two feet from the witch.
The rest of the group has cleared the Heartless by then, giving them the full freedom to turn and focus on Magica. If she wasn't covered in white feathers, all the witch's color would definitely be drained from her face. Even more so when she hears the barrier behind her shatter. Looking over her shoulder, she sees the rest of the wedding glaring at her. Trapped on both sides.
"Magica DeSpell!" Donald exclaims, practically shoving the queen aside. He regards the sorceress with a disdainful look rarely seen. "I should known you would be involved in this business!"
"My dear Donald," she replies, putting on her most charming smile. It hardly counters the glare. "It would seem that…"
"I told you to stay away, you hussy!" Daisy Duck yells, breaking free from the crowd and getting right up in Magica's face. "Donald doesn't ever want to… Ah!"
Unfortunately, the court lady's jealous rage has made her an easy target. Magica grabs her wrist, pulling her close and laying a hand on her head.
"Oh, you witch!" Donald cries, going red all over. "Let her go or I'll…!"
"You'll what, darling?" Magica taunts, tightening her grip. "I seem to hold the cards here now."
Telary leans close to Sora, who's been watching the exchange with considerable confusion. "Ex-girlfriend," he explains succinctly. "Bad breakup. She was just using him to get close to the Cornerstone."
"You don't need to make this any uglier, Magica," Minnie says, calm despite the clear and present danger to her best friend. "Release Daisy now, and…"
"Yeah, they're real suckers for forgiveness around here!" Oswald interrupts. Minnie had been a bit preoccupied to notice the rabbit's presence, but she can't mistake the sound of his voice. The rest of the closer Royal Court members are quite taken aback as well. "Seriously, just say sorry, promise to never do it again, and do something mildly useful and bam, you're back in good graces!"
"A fine proposition for a weakling like you," the witch calls back, sneering (which is an impressive feat when you've got a beak). "But I won't grovel to the likes of them!" She throws Daisy to the floor, one hand already raised. In a flash of dark red energy, she vanishes. A large scorch mark mars the carpet, all that's left to suggest Magica was ever there.
With the witch gone, the two sides of the room rush to each other. Donald leads the charge, checking on Daisy. Mickey and Minnie lock themselves in a tight embrace, Azlyn and Telary kneeling beside the people who raised them.
Sora and Riku find their way to Kairi, who looks better than she had a few minutes ago. Or at the very least, angrier. "What did you do?" she accuses Sora, frowning at him. He opens his mouth to explain, but she just keeps going. "They ruined the centerpieces, Sora! And I can't imagine they were gentle with the flowers, or the string quartet's instruments, or… Hey, why do you smell so bad?"
"Long story," is all the Keybearer says in reply, sighing wearily. "Try to just ignore it for a sec though, huh?" He glomps onto her, wrapping the redhead up in his embrace. He can feel the tension in her whole body for a moment, and then it melts away.
"I would like at least some explanation, however," Riku says. Sora releases Kairi, turning to find his friend giving him a stern look, arms folded. "Why are there Heartless in the castle, and what the hell are Pete, Magica DeSpell, and Mortimer Mouse all doing here?"
"You know who those others are?" Sora asks, incredulous.
Riku nods. "Mickey and I have had a lot of time to talk. The only one I don't know is that rabbit. But that's trivia. What is going on today?"
"They found a way to block the Cornerstone," Mickey explains. He steps up to the Destiny Islands trio, Azlyn, Telary, and Minnie close behind. "It's nasty stuff, and apparently can defend itself. If we can find a way to separate it from the Cornerstone itself, our Heartless problem would go away."
"Then it sounds like we need to focus on what we know of the Cornerstone," Minnie says, scratching her chin. "It's pure light energy, powerful enough to spread its effects over a wide area and prevent any darkness from breaking through."
"Magica and Mortimer specifically avoided using any explicitly dark energy in its creation," Oswald adds. "It's bad, but not a kind of bad that the Cornerstone can recognize. Mostly nanomachinary, though its held together and powered by Magica's, um, magic."
"Held together by magic, hm?" Telary chimes in. "So if we could figure out what spell she's using to hold it together, then we could theoretically disrupt its function?"
"But there's still the machinery aspect to contend with," Cid says, grinding his teeth as though chewing a cigarette.
"Short circuit?" Dale suggests, Chip nodding beside him. "A quick blast of electricity and bam!"
"So, we have a theoretical solution," Mickey says, somehow bringing everyone's attention immediately to him. "But we still aren't sure how Magica is thaumaturgically enabling the machinery. I don't think we'd have a lot of trial and error either?"
"What if we skipped the Blot entirely?" Kairi says, frowning as she puzzles a few things out. "Maybe there's something we could do to the Cornerstone?"
Sora jumps as a thought hits him. "Ooh, ooh! Kairi, you can affect the Cornerstone, right? Remember, before we went off and fought Xehanort's Heartless, you used it to like, add your power to the Princesses holding back the Final Keyhole?"
"There is a connection," she agrees, nodding. "The reason I was feeling so weird all day must have been because of the disruption of the Cornerstone's energy."
"She'd probably have to be close though," Mickey adds. "I doubt you can access the Cornerstone's energy when it's being blocked."
"I would probably have to actually lay hands on it," Kairi says. "You said it can defend itself?"
"But it's limited by how much of it there actually is," Mickey corrects her. "I only just managed to cover the whole Cornerstone after we were gone. Give it enough potential targets, and it could literally stretch itself too thin."
"But Pete and Magica and all the Heartless are going to be in the throne room," Leon points out. "So we need enough people where we can stretch the Blot effectively and managed our other enemies."
"Then it's a good thing we have an entire guest list of mostly the most badass people we know," Azlyn says, giving the Restoration Committee leader a broad grin.
"She's right," Sora agrees. He's grinning too, looking out over his gathered friends. "You're all here because you love Azlyn and Telary, and you want to see them be together forever. To take their two lives and build a new one together. Well, what better wedding present could there be than making sure they have the chance to do that?"
"I got them a blender," Riku whispers to Yuffie, who giggles beneath her hand.
"So," Sora says, holding the Keyblade high. "Who's with me?"
The responding cheer is near-deafening.
"I love you, Tel," Azlyn whispers to her almost-husband. "So much. But y'know, you could really learn a thing or two about giving speeches from Sora."
He leans over to kiss her forehead. "Thanks for the tip, dear."
The knight shrugs. "What're wives for?" She steps closer to the group's center, boisterously shouting, "Okay, now who's gonna get me a shield?"
KH-KH-KH
Pete paces back and forth across the throne platform, wringing his hands profusely. "Okay, okay," he mutters, just barely loud enough for his cohorts to hear. "So, things went a little off-model. Boat Boy and the Keybrat are back, and they're probably pretty ticked. But I still got Heartless, right? Lots and lots of Heartless!"
"And my magic," Magica says, thought she doesn't look to be brimming with confidence in her cohort.
"And, um…" Mortimer pauses, scratching his chin as he desperately searches for something that could make him useful to the coming battle. "My… Well, you have my… My big brain, and my smooth ladykiller skills, and…" At this point he realizes the others are looking at him with undisguised disdain. "Well, I helped create the Blot, didn't I? Sheesh!"
"You keep talking about this Maleficent person," Magica brings up to Pete. "If she's so amazing and powerful, why not simply call on her to deliver us victory?"
Pete stops pacing, his face rapidly losing what little color it had. "Are you serious? Maleficent could care less about my childish, obsessive grudge against my old deckhand! I had to take all my vacation days to give me time to set up this thing, and you won't be so surprised to know I don't get many of them! She'd fry my butt with green fire if I came running to her for help!"
"Why does she put up with you, anyway?" Mortimer asks, frowning. "I mean, you've only proven your incompetence time and again. Are you really the best she can do? Surely…"
"That's enough lip outta you, mister!" Pete snaps. "As ya just reminded me a second ago, your part in this scheme is already over, so don't make me start to consider what to do with useless minions. Which I am not one of!"
Any more ranting from the "mastermind" is cut off when a loud boom echoes throughout the audience chamber. Pete and Mortimer nearly fall down in fright, which Magica only sneers at. "Relax, would you?" the witch snaps, scowling at her cowardly companions. "I took a page from the mouse queen's book and sealed the door with a spell. Unfortunately I can't guarantee that my spell is on the same level as hers. She has a better knowledge of the castle's magical field, I imagine she used some kind of enchanted object to enhance…"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Pete suddenly straightens up, his expression hardening into serious resolve. "Well, if it's a fight these punks want, then that's what they'll get! I don't care how many Keybrats they throw at me, Pete's last great revenge scheme ain't goin' down without a long, hard fight!"
The audience chamber dims visibly, as if all light sources are momentarily shrouded. The shadows respond, Heartless of all kinds rising from any surface. Armored Knights comprise the bulk of the forces, a few Dual Blades there to act as heavy duty weaponry. Small mages fill the air, ready to employ their deadly magic from above. And directly behind the throne platform, all six pieces of a full Guard Armor assemble.
Magica grins at the sight, already pulling in all the magic she can throw. Mortimer finally decides to man (or mouse, as the case may be) up. He flicks a switch concealed in his glove, four mechanical tentacles ripping through the back of his labcoat and pulling him into the air. Pete grabs a pair of huge bombs, one in each hand and both ready to be thrown.
"Bring it!" he declares.
KH-KH-KH
"C'mon!" Azlyn yells, swinging her newly retrieved trusty shield in the air. "Don't tell me I got all psyched up just to be disappointed because you people can't handle a lousy door!"
"This isn't any normal door!" Riku yells right back, firing another large blast of dark fire. "They must be protecting it somehow!"
"Protection?" Sora repeats. Kingdom Key is already in his hand, and for a long moment he just stares at it. When he finally looks up, its with determination his companions haven't seen since the battle with Xemnas. "They can put up whatever barriers they want, it's just another lock. And I was born to unlock things!"
He swings his blade forward, pointing its tip toward the door. Light gathers around it, shooting out in a wrist-wide beam of pure white energy. It hits the door and explodes into a deluge of sparkling particles. It's a lot of power. Too much for the giant door to handle, in fact. Both sides of it fall, breaking free of their hinges with a terrible squeal and falling to land on the audience chamber floor. And the few dozen Heartless that had been standing there.
Azlyn and Telary see the army of Heartless still remaining, all the dark creatures eager for battle and the hearts that will be their reward. They take note of their mortal enemies, geared up for a final confrontation from which they have nothing to lose.
"I don't remember sending you lowlifes an invitation!" the bride roars, steeling herself for a charge.
"Let's show 'em what we do to party crashers in Disney Castle!" Telary screams, rushing forward with his staff held high and Azlyn by his side. The guests follow, all eager to help their friends salvage this day.
Azlyn starts things off, spinning around as she reaches the Heartless's front line. Four Armored Knights are destroyed instantly. Telary comes in behind her, thrusting out his hand and launching a stream of lightning that fries another large group. The smoke hasn't even begun to clear when Riku and Sora jump in, Keyblades swinging.
Mickey sidesteps a blade, then has to flip away from an attack coming from his other side. A third Armored Knight moves in, so he leaps aside. He flies over their heads completely, just in time for a Pearl spell from Minnie to take out all three of the creatures. A few mages swoop down to attack, but the king and queen merely raise their Keyblade and hand, respectively, and combine their power for a Faith spell that shoots out from their bodies in a column of pure white light.
Speaking of Light, Kairi augments her Keyblade swing with some of her internal power, creating a hard light blade that decimates three rows of Armored Knights instead of one. She leaps into the gap left behind, just as Sora slides in to join her. Together, the couple start bashing enemies left and right.
Just a few feet away, Donald clears away a field of Heartless with a widespread Firaga. When the flames are gone, Magica stands waiting. She attacks with bolts of dark magic, but the court wizard is ready for her. Holding out his left hand, he absorbs the energy, taking it through his body and purifying it as he goes. The magic reaches his right arm, and he thrusts it at the witch to send her magic right back at her.
Crossing her arms in an X, Magica barely manages to block the energy. Scowling, she prepares another spell. It's quickly aborted, however, when an absolutely enraged Daisy Duck smashes into her torso, both women going to the ground. Cue the cat fight. Or duck fight. Whatever its proper name, the conflict is brutal. Feathers fly.
Donald gets a little too caught up in watching it, but luckily Goofy and his shield are there to watch his little buddy's back. He plows straight through several Shadows, attempting to slide to a smooth stop. He trips and falls backward, shield flying from his hand. Whether by sheer luck or some kind of oddly specific skill, five Heartless perish from the disc's mad flight.
Azlyn grabs her mentor's shield on its, her own held up to deflect a few fireballs from some Red Nocturnes. She swipes her shield to get the Heartless to clear some distance, then pivots and hurls the second shield to neatly destroy the creatures. Behind her, Telary crushes a dozen Armored Knights with powerful gravity.
Yuffie is the next one to catch Goofy's shield, but she immediately hurls it away towards some Heartless sneaking up on Riku. Grinning at the sight of the silver-haired young man, she flips over to say hello, crashing feetfirst into the chest of a Dual Blade. The Heartless barely staggers, but she uses the opportunity to push off for another flip. Landing in front of Riku, who only barely keeps himself from slashing the ninja on pure reflex, she points out the Heartless currently swinging its blade down at him.
Riku isn't quite confident this is a blow he can block on main strength alone, instead throwing up a Dark Shield to deal with the strike. Given a moment, he cartwheels to the side, bends his knees for momentum, and leaps up to slash the Heartless in its face. Riku actually aims a bit too low, decapitating the creature instead. All the same to him, really. He turns to see Yuffie giving him an impressed, and more than a little turned on, look.
Riku immediately turns back to battle, a convenient way to hide his sudden blush.
Sora and Kairi finish off a pair of Surveillance Drones swooping in, just in time to see Mortimer leaping at them from above. The claws of his mechanical tentacles snap at the couple, who move back from the blows.
"'Fraid we've didn't have the chance to get acquainted earlier!" Mortimer says, his top right tentacle manifesting some kind of gun barrel. It begins spitting out purple bolts of energy, forcing the Keyblade wielders to dodge and deflect. "Name's Mortimer Mouse, world's smartest mouse! My grudge against King Mickey goes back many years, to when I was betrothed to none other than the good Queen Minnie, his current wife. Unfortunately…"
"Dude!" Sora snaps, batting away a laser blast into some Heartless, "it is so too late to start giving me your backstory now."
"Yep," Kairi agrees, holding up a hand to completely absorb an energy beam. A slight glow momentarily surrounds her, and when it fades she feels her strength has grown. "You're pretty much just an obstacle for us to knock down at this point. Embrace it!"
"Huh?" Mortimer pouts. "B-but…" He doesn't get to finish his complaint. A nut shot from a Keyblade will do that to a guy. As he goes down, Mortimer manages to rasp out one last, "Ha-cha-cha…"
Sora and Kairi appreciate the sight for a brief moment before a bomb explodes in the air just a few feet from them. Taken by surprise, the pair fly back several feet from the explosive force. Pete, the bomb's thrower, regards their flight with immense satisfaction. Laughing, he throws another bomb over where Mickey and his wife are fending off some flying Heartless. The explosive manages to roll in close to the couple without either one becoming aware.
Luckily, Oswald the lucky rabbit is watching out for his brother. "MICKEY!" he cries, bounding over the heads of an Armored Knight. He hits the ground running, the king turning in time to see what danger he's being warned of. But Oswald is already too committed to his charge, hopping up to land a flying tackle on his brother. The pair skid a few feet across the floor, barely clearing the bomb's safety radius.
Minnie, who had simply started running after the warning was issued, looks on with wide eyes. Then some Shadows wander by and she gets absorbed in the fight.
"Oswald!" Mickey declares, eyes truly lighting up at his brother for the first time in a long time. "You saved me! Ya saved my life!"
The rabbit shrugs, standing up and brushing himself off. "Yeah, well… What're big brothers for, ya know?"
Mickey notices another, smaller explosive coming for he and his brother. Reacting quickly, he jumps over Oswald's head to bat the bomb away. Looking up, he sees Pete's burly form towering over him.
"What a touching family reunion," the fat cat remarks, wiping a fake tear from his eyes. "Glad I could make it happen. Not so glad ya turned on me, Ears."
"You started it, big boy!" Oswald shoots back, leveling his rapier at the villain. "You lied to me from the start. I was stupid to trust you." He grins, slightly manic. "But now I guess I get to pay you back for some of that, don't I?"
"Sorry, Os," Mickey tells the rabbit with a shake of his head. "I'm afraid this final battle isn't meant for us."
"You're right," the rabbit agrees, sighing. "I'm not happy about it, but you are. This one goes to them."
Pete looks down at the rodent brothers in confused dismay. "Now just what in the sam heck are you two bozos talking about?"
A shield to the chest, and the fireball that follows in its wake, provide an answer. Pete stumbles back, arms flailing as he struggles for balance. When he's finally settled, the fat cat looks up to see Azlyn and Telary standing before him. To say they look upset would be an understatement.
"Uh, hey there kids!" Pete greets he pair with a slow, shaky wave. "Uh, so, about this whole, y'know, wedding thing…"
"Normally I'd take time to list all the different ways I'm gonna kick your ass," Azlyn declares, her voice and expression stone cold. "But I think that today, a demonstration is in order."
"I'm not big into violence," Telary adds, just as ruthless as his bride-to-be. White energy crackles around his clenched fists. "But I think I'll make an exception this time."
Pete looks from one member of the pair to the other, then steels himself for battle. "Alright, kiddos. Bring it on!"
Azlyn screams loud enough to momentarily get even the Heartless's attention, hurtling herself forward with shield drawn back. Pete tosses a bomb, but she merely bats it away with her free hand. The knight lands, swinging her shield for Pete's face. The fat cat tries to move, but it's no use. Large teeth go flying.
He retaliates with a powerful punch, but Azlyn merely ducks beneath the blow. She comes up spinning, knocking her shield into Pete's face from the other direction. Then she brings her knee up into his gut. He goes down, immediately the victim of another face blow. Satisfied, Azlyn pirouettes out of the way just as orbs of pure magical energy impact against Pete's torso. With a howl of pain, he goes flying backwards.
He smashes both thrones to splinters with his landing, shaking the whole platform with the force of his impact. Looking up weakly over his stomach, Pete sees that the couple aren't done yet. They stalk toward him with clear purpose.
Pete turns his head, regarding the rest of the audience chamber. It seems that, despite the large number of Heartless he'd called, there can be no preventing this scheme from joining his collection of defeats. He's out of time, out of options, no way out…
Except, he remembers, the reason this scheme had a chance of success anyway. His last, best weapon that just might salvage at least some of his goals. Emboldened by his sudden idea, Pete rises to his knees. Azlyn and Telary are almost to the platform, so time is of the essence. He practically throws himself forward, reaching for the remains of Minnie's throne. He has to sift through some rubble, but within moments he finds what he's looking for. Not even looking at his approaching opponents, Pete jams his pudgy finger down on a small red button.
The throne platform shakes, sliding to the left. The motion brings Pete closer to Azlyn and Telary, but he doesn't care. Maleficent's minion is already hurling himself the other way. He drops several feet, barely managing to land without significant harm. Marshaling his last strength, Pete limps toward the Cornerstone room.
Azlyn, Telary, Mickey, and Oswald stand at the platform's lip, looking down towards the underground chamber's door.
"Looks like we got him running," Azlyn remarks with a satisfied smirk. "Probably portaling out to go cry to Maleficent as we speak."
"Maybe…" Telary replies, frowning. "Unless he knows something we don't."
"Whaddya mean?" Azlyn asks.
Suddenly, the chamber erupts into a loud, shrill, uninterrupted screaming. Azlyn and Telary whirl to see Heartless everywhere begin to collapse, dissipating into wisps of immaterial darkness. Everyone who was fighting stops, wincing at the harsh sound and all the particles flying everywhere. Mickey yelps, dropping his Keyblade like it's a burning coal. It clatters to the ground and fades from existence.
A wave of pure light erupts out of the underground chamber, brilliantly shining upward to illuminate the entire room in white. Everyone covers their faces, looking away to avoid being blinded. After a moment, the light fades and all returns to normal. Everyone raises a hearty cheer.
Except the king. "Now, wait a minute fellas!" he declares, failing to catch the room's attention. "This is too easy! Let's all just take a minute and…"
A booming, familiar laugh interrupts Mickey's warning and everyone else's merriment. It emanates from the Cornerstone chamber, Azlyn, Telary, Oswald, and Mickey turning to look down at it. Seconds later, a stream of inky black goop comes flying out. It slams into the heroes, sending them all hurtling through the air to land near Sora and Kairi.
The goop retracts, gathering its substance and reforming itself into a large, wraith-like shape. Arms extend to either side, ending in four sharp claws. Its head stretches upward like some grotesque pointed hood, sickly green light emanating from a wicked mouth and two large triangular eyes. Its torso tapers down into a thick tail that swishes as it moves.
"What is that?" Sora asks, horror in his voice as he readies his battle stance.
"Ol' Mortimer and Magica had the right idea," the strange phantom declares in Pete's harsh voice. "But I guess they never really took the time to figure out just what kinda potential this stuff really had."
"Pete?" Mickey gasps, regarding the strange thing before him with confusion and fear. "Is that you?"
"What did you do?" Azlyn demands.
"I took the last option I had left," Pete explains, already rearing up, the substance surrounding him stretching the give him even more height. "Figured if this stuff had its own fighting spirit, I might as well test it out. Gotta say, I'm liking it. Must be how Maleficent feels when she goes full dragon."
"That stuff won't save you!" Oswald warns, holding his sword up.
"You're still outnumbered!" Riku agrees, brandishing his Keyblade.
"You're still going down!" Azlyn agrees.
"Maybe so," Pete admits, more and more Blot flowing into his form and increasing his size. "But not before I take as many of you bozos down with me as I can!"
The Blot's "hands" fly out, like an inky black wave descending on the wedding guests standing near the room's back. They're swept away in droves, flying out through the doorway and into the halls. They retract just as quickly, adding substance to the main body. Once he's gathered sufficient mass, Pete slithers towards the remaining heroes with the speed and strength of an angered python.
He knocks into Riku first, sending the silver-haired young man flying off to the right. Reforming, Pete sweeps an elongated limb into Sora and Kairi, his other "arm" smacking Mickey and Oswald into the floor. Retracting the limbs, he towers over Azlyn and Telary, looking down on them through the blot's eyes.
"Now normally this is the part where I'd list all the ways I'm gonna hurt ya," he says, smugly echoing Azlyn's own threat. "But right now I guess I'll just skip straight ahead to layin' the hurt right on ya!"
Pete's Blot-covered fist swings down, Azlyn barely raising her shield in time to block. She skids backwards along the floor, slipping and falling over Sora's prone form. Telary can't waste a moment of concentration to watch his fiancée's slide, calling up a lightning bolt to hopefully give Pete something to think about. The electricity momentarily scrambles the goop's technological components, giving the wizard enough time to flee.
When Pete gains control of himself, the arm goes flying after the wizard again. Luckily Kairi has recovered by now, stepping in front of her brother and hurling a ball of light at the stretching limb. It impacts, giving the Blot a momentary pause. She slashes at the stunned goop, sending several feet of it flying off to the right, separated from the main body. While the Blot reforms its claws, Kairi rushes away before retaliation.
After observing the departed limb droop into inactivity, Telary watches the Blot very carefully. After a moment of observation, he has a potential solution. He starts running towards where Azlyn and Sora are, hurling a few token fireballs to keep Pete off-balance. Telary's nearly off-balance himself, almost spent on magical energy. Hopefully he won't need it for much longer.
"Sora, Riku!" the wizard barks in his most authoritative voice. "Can you keep him busy for a second. I think I have a plan, but…"
He needn't say anything more before the Keyblade wielders are on it. They jump at the Blot, slashing at its form to keep Pete focused away from the bride and groom. Unexpectedly, Oswald is quickly there to join them with his rapier.
"Okay, what's the idea?" Azlyn asks. "And it better not involve anymore mess. This outfit is ruined enough as is."
"I don't think we stand much chance against the Blot," Telary says, talking as fast as he can. "But that's not the problem so much, right? Look at that patch over there, it went completely dead once severed from the main body. Pete's must have taken over full manual control, probably from inside the structure."
"Eugh!" Azlyn exclaims, sticking her tongue out and scrunching up her face at the thought. Once she's over the disgust, she gets her groom's plan. "So we're gonna knock him out of there. But how are we supposed to know where he is in all that goop?"
"He doesn't have an unlimited amount," Telary replies, grinning. "Every time he has to stretch out, the main body's mass goes down."
"So we're gonna split him up, thin out his protection in the main body," Kairi says, nodding thoughtfully. She gives her brother a confident grin. "Good thinking, Tel."
"Sure was," Azlyn agrees, sparing a quick moment to plant a kiss on his cheek. "You focus on the spreading. I'm knocking that asshole out myself!"
The redheaded siblings take off for opposite sides of the room. Sora, Riku, and Oswald are at the limits of what they can do to contain the Blot. Congealing into a snakelike shape, Pete rams the three fighter aside with a single swerve of its body. Riku and Oswald are acrobatic enough to land on their feet, but Sora hits the floor butt first and slides several feet across.
Looking up, Riku sees Telary standing near the left wall, frantically waving to get his attention. Once the wizard is sure Riku's looking, he begins moving his arms in an expansive "come over here" gesture. The silver-haired young man nods in reply, firing off a Dark Fira before making his way over to the redhead.
Oswald is headed for Kairi as well, leaping and bounding as Pete's right arm attempts to sideswipe him again. The left follows Riku, shrinking the torso with every inch it extends. Azlyn rushes the front meanwhile, the Blot using more substance to manifest smaller clawed arms to strike at her. She dodges every swipe, sparks flying around as the Blot's talons scratch thin grooves in the marble floor. Sora stands steady in front, deflecting swipes as they come.
The Blot's main substance, too spread out to maintain is ghoulish appearance, solidifies into a Pete-sized outline in inky black nanomachinary. In places, spots of dark blue and red jumpsuit even poke through. Pete doesn't seem to realizes, too frustrated by his opponents' easy evasions of his attack. The glowing green eyes of his blot covering flash back and forth, gooey mouth locked into a scowl.
Azlyn smirks at the sight, flipping sideways as two sharpened tendrils slide below her. As she begins tumbling left, the bride-to-be pulls back her shield. As soon as her feet are on the ground again, she hurls the disc with all her might.
Its aim is true, and Pete is far too busy with everything going on to notice. Until it's too late, eyes widening as the shield closes the last few inches. It smacks straight into his forehead, tearing through the minimal Blot substance still covering his face. Pete staggers, involuntarily taking several blundering steps backwards. All around him, the once carefully controlled Blot begins to waver, all its limbs and protrusion losing their solidity and melting into goop. He tries to regain control, harden the substance back to a useful consistency. For a moment it appears to be working, the Blot becoming solid once again.
Then Azlyn catches her shield on the rebound, readjusts her aim, and takes her second shot. It comes in just centimeters lower, right between the Blot-empowered fat cat's eyes. Pete cries out in pain, his body convulsing as he collapses to the floor. All around, the Blot instantly loses all coherence and consistency. In the end, after all his scheming and double-crossing, Pete ends up right where he deserves to be: hurting and unconscious amidst a massive pile of disgusting residue.
The wedding guests who had been forced outside during the battle rush in, all of them raising a triumphant cheer to the conquering heroes. Azlyn gives a weak wave, almost collapsing before Sora can hold her up. Seconds later, Telary takes over.
"Well, we stopped him," the wizard wearily says to his bride, giving her just a slight smile. As he looks around at the audience chamber's utter devastation, it's all he can bring himself to give.
"Too bad it was only after he screwed everything up," Azlyn replies, also surveying the carnage with significant melancholy. "It's funny, y'know. I was against the whole big deal mega-wedding thing, and now that it's been busted… I think I might've liked it."
Telary puts his hands on the knight's shoulders, spinning her around so they're facing each other. "It's not ruined. Not really. As long as you and me, ad everyone we love is around us, we can still get married. I don't care what kind of backdrop it happens in front of. As long as I'm with you."
Everyone (barring Riku, Oswald, Leon, Cid, and Donald) lets out an appreciative aww at the lovely sentiment. Then, Kairi clears her throat.
"As lovely as that sounds," the Princess of Heart declares, once she has everyone's attention, "it's hardly necessary." Everyone gives her confused looks, least of all the bride and groom. Kairi just shrugs. "What, you think I wouldn't plan a wedding for these two without a major backup? Daisy, how're things looking at the alternate location?"
"Alternate…?" Sora mutters, clearly lost by all this talk of a backup. He certainly hadn't been informed of this.
"Everything should be good to go," Daisy reports with a cutesy salute. "Disney Town Square is ready for a wedding whenever Azlyn and Telary give the word."
"Seriously?" Azlyn declares, practically breathless. "You planned an entire backup wedding, just in case? What are you?"
Kairi shrugs, giggling happily. She strikes a pose, hands on her hips like some comic book hero. "I am the wedding planner. You're welcome!"
Author's Note at the end of next chapter.